1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to balusters which extend from a hand rail to a bottom rail, shoe rail, step, or floor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Numerous patents exist for balusters.
These include U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,272,061; 4,344,604; 4,352,485; 4,403,767; 4,421,302; 4,533,121; 4,928,930; 5,056,283; and 5,340,087.
Of these, four (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,272,061; 4,421,302; 5,056,283; and 5,340,087) have a portion of the perimeter of the baluster near one or more ends of the baluster proceed increasingly more inward as such end of the baluster is approached. None, however, have the entire perimeter of the baluster proceed increasingly more inward as an end of the baluster is approached.
Furthermore, the primary reason for this indentation in the balusters of these four patents is to accommodate a sloping hand rail while the balusters remain vertical on a stairway. There would, consequently, be no reason to extend the indentation.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,340,087 each end of the baluster is formed with a first edge eliminated, creating an angled face; and a second edge of that end of the baluster is chamfered to facilitate pivoting of the hand rail (and, at the other end of the baluster, the stair rail or base rail) with respect to that end of the baluster. Lines 19 through 22 in column 3 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,340,087 observe, “In the case of a non-rectangular baluster such chamfering will need to be progressive around the upper side of the baluster.” The chamfering simply removes excess material which would otherwise preclude the hand rail (or stair or base rail) from resting against the entire length of the angled face. For a baluster which has a rectangular cross section at and near the end of the baluster, this would indicate that maximum chamfering would occur at the point of the perimeter farthest from the angled face and that, at the two points where the perimeter meets the angled face, there would be no chamfering because no excess material would exist at those two points. Hence, at such two points there would be no indentation of the perimeter.